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The Pardee RAND Graduate School (PRGS.edu) is the largest public policy Ph.D. program in the nation and the only program based at an independent public policy research organization—the RAND Corporation.

Critical Infrastructure Protection

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Every nation has an obligation to protect essential government, financial, energy, transportation, and other critical infrastructure operations against terrorist activities and natural disasters. RAND addresses homeland security and critical infrastructure needs through objective research that assists national, state, and local agencies in preventing and mitigating terrorist activities, as well as in improving disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.

Today, the U.S. confronts a multilayered terrorist threat and the recent spate of attacks in Europe underscores the necessity for ensuring that intelligence keeps up with it. Intelligence services must continue to prevent terrorist assaults dispatched from abroad, head off new shoe and underwear bombers, intercept individuals returning from jihadist fronts with terrorist intentions, while at the same time uncovering and thwarting homegrown plots.

The Presidential Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force developed guidelines to ensure that federal agencies incorporate key principles of resilience into their formulation, evaluation, and prioritization of infrastructure investments related to Sandy rebuilding. An initial assessment of the implementation of the guidelines identifies opportunities and challenges.

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China endeavors to protect its expanding interests in the Middle East by not taking sides in conflicts and controversies. The United States should encourage China to become more involved in efforts to improve regional stability while reassuring partners of its own commitment to the region.

China endeavors to protect its expanding interests in the Middle East by not taking sides in conflicts and controversies. The United States should encourage China to get more involved in efforts to improve regional stability while reassuring partners of its own commitment to the region.

RAND conducted two discovery games to explore possible solutions for improving cybersecurity, assess their implications, and develop an initial framework to support debate and inform decisions regarding cybersecurity policies and practices.

This issue highlights the policy issues facing the next U.S. president; the problem of food, energy, and water scarcity throughout the world; and the connection between violence against women and murder.

Digital technologies are omnipresent, both in terms of where we are and what we do. A digital society can bring about economic and societal gain, but there are many challenges that need to be addressed beyond the actual technologies.

Re-establishing border controls across Europe would cost €2 to 3 billion in annual operating costs, plus fixed one-off costs of anywhere between €0.1 and €19 billion. There would also be significant social and political costs.

Key findings from the 2016 Thought Leadership Programme, convened by Corsham Institute in conjunction with RAND Europe and St George's House exploring opportunities and challenges created by digital technologies in society.

The Schengen Agreement in 1985 led to the end of border controls across 26 European nations. Reintroducing these controls would cost billions of euros in economic costs. Social and political costs would also be substantial.

Absolute data breach prevention is not possible, so knowing what people want when it happens is important. Consumers and corporations alike should accept this risk as a “when,” not an “if,” and prepare for it.

Why don't American companies invest more in computer security? One possible explanation: Relative to the other risks they face, cyber risks often aren't as significant as expected. Most breaches cost companies less than 0.4 percent of their annual revenues.

An assessment of Ukraine's security sector determines what different institutions need to do and where gaps exist. Roles and responsibilities need to be clarified, and coordination is needed among individual ministries and agencies.

The 2014 Maidan revolution created an opportunity for change in a system that had resisted it for 25 years. The Ukrainian security establishment has progressed since then, but its efforts have been insufficient to address the threats now facing the nation.

A new center will conduct analyses and make recommendations to strengthen DHS across its missions to prevent terrorism and enhance security, secure and manage U.S. borders, enforce and administer immigration laws, safeguard and secure cyberspace, and strengthen national preparedness and resiliency.

RAND researchers developed a framework and metrics for examining vulnerabilities, opportunities, and risks to U.S. energy transmission, storage, and distribution systems through 2030 under a range of uncertainties.

A wall along the U.S. border with Mexico would not eliminate illegal migration, its maintenance and monitoring would be costly, and it would likely be undermined by tunnelers. Also, severing legitimate cross-border movements for trade and tourism would be tremendously damaging to the U.S. economy.

Data breaches have made headlines in recent years, exposing poor practices that put the personal information of millions of consumers at risk. But the cost of a typical cyber breach is much less than generally estimated, providing one possible explanation for why American companies do not invest more to improve computer security.

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Researcher Spotlight

Assistant Policy Analyst

Bonnie Triezenberg is a doctoral candidate at the Pardee RAND Graduate School and an assistant policy analyst at RAND. Previously, she was the senior technical fellow at the Boeing Company, specializing in agile systems and software development.

Acting Associate Director, RAND Arroyo Center

Terrence K. Kelly is acting associate director, RAND Arroyo Center, and has been a senior operations researcher at the RAND Corporation since 2002; he is also a professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School.

The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest.